Weight loss shakes- friend or foe?

The promise of quick easy weight loss, with no cooking required, no calorie counting, and without exercising- doesn’t this sound appealing?
While most of us who have tried a shake diet have realised quite quickly that the extreme hunger, boredom, cravings, and crankiness mean shake diets are hard to sustain for more than a few weeks…
So is there any value in including shakes in your weight loss plan on a less extreme level?
The weight loss kickstart
Studies have found that weight management plans that start with quick weight loss initially followed by a more moderate rate of weight loss have shown the best long term results- higher overall weight loss. The theory is that a more restrictive diet can be followed by most as long as they know it’s just for a short period of time (not forever).
In addition that they get such positive feedback from people around them noticing their weight loss, seeing their weight drop on the scales at home, feeling better within themselves. This acts as a positive association to taking steps to manage weight, and higher motivation from then on.
In line with this, using shakes as a convenient way to reduce caloric intake for the short term may be an effective strategy. This of course is dependent on a gradual transition to a more sustainable level of weight loss afterwards, with a less restrictive but still healthy and sensible diet plan.
Going back to old eating patterns after a period of calorie restriction runs the risk of weight being regained quickly (and plus some), and the more times this cycle repeats, the more your metabolism is affected, and the harder it becomes to lose weight.
For convenience
If you are a notorious meal skipper, someone who forgets to pack food to bring and ends up grabbing whatever takeaway options are available at the time, or who has fallen victim to the lure of high sugar pre-packaged snack foods because they are convenient, then shakes may help you.
Generally most weight loss shakes will be supplemented with additional vitamins and minerals (some are nutritionally complete), are calorie controlled, contain carbohydrate and protein, and are low GI. If the option is between eating nothing at all, or choosing something unhealthy, a shake could be a convenient portable and easy to prepare way to eat on the go and/or quickly.
When you lack the weight loss knowledge
As much information as we have available to us on nutrition, exercise, and weight loss diets, so many of us are increasingly confused about what to believe, or have limited knowledge about what healthy eating is, how to prepare fresh and healthy meals, or what portion sizes to choose.
If you want to get started losing weight, you could choose to substitute some of your meals with shakes, to take the first steps towards change while you do your research and find the weight loss plan that will work for you. This helps counteract that common trap where you wait to start until you find the perfect diet/exercise/weight loss plan… which may be weeks, months, or years away.
Taking one step, and then improving on this each week as you learn more will put you way ahead of where you would be if you waited until you had the perfect plan in place. Of course, if you want to accelerate your learning and educate yourself on the methods that really work long term, while losing weight at the same time… why not look into a weight loss retreat?
OnTrack offer guaranteed weight loss, while experts educate you on nutrition, cooking, exercising, goal setting for success and more!